Is continuing the Bush tax cuts hurting the economy?

Starting them started the downward spiral of the economy, so of course continuing them hurt us. Cutting taxes for the wealthy has never been a good idea, but it keeps getting shopped around every so often, as if it is new. The poor get the short end of the stick, and the rich keep even more money than they know what to do with. Happened under Reagan too, but somehow people forget that.

I'm among the unrich and the Bush tax cuts has put more money in my pockets. They have helped the middle class and below.

What the hell are you talking about? Because of those tax cuts, the economy started tanking, and my husbands job went with it. He was unemployed for 2 years before he finally found work, part time. Like 10 hours per week part time. He finally found a second job, another part time job...4 hours per week this time. Maybe, in another couple of years, he will accrue enough part time jobs to make up the money he lost not working a full time job!

how about we just make it the same for everyone or a flat tax but giveing the rich tax breaks when they are still sitting on their money is not helping anything

The average percentage of GDP required to fund the federal government since 1946 is 17.7%. IN 2010 the debt to GDP for funding the federal government was 14.43% during this deep recession. http://www.usgovernmentrevenu...
You do the math!!

I know people balk at the idea, but i wish we just had a flat percentage that we all paid.no loop holes for the rich, big business or anyone else.Nobody likes to pay taxes but we need the revenue to fund programs,schools and .our entire infrastructure. A flat percentage feels the same for everyone..,...ok, off my soap box! ;)

How about having the first say £12,000/$19,000 of everyone's income tax free, then a flat tax rate on the rest of it, so it's effectively taxing disposable income, takes low earners out of taxes, and makes it lightly progressive. It's also fair and simple.

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Preach it Doc. All I can add is AMEN!

Everything Bush did hurt the economy as it pertains to the nations people and international confidence.

but ending them is not the only thing that needs to be done.
Shrinking the giant military budget and bringing the troops home would be another step in the right direction.

Absolutely! They are the main reason for the huge deficit in the USA.

Well empirical evidence is starting to bore this out.

Bush inherited a balanced budget with the largest budget surplus in US history. What did he leave for Obama to inherit? An economy in free-fall. 800,090 jobs lost per month. A Stock market with half its value gone. A middle class 40% poorer then when he took office. I'm no great fan of what Obama has done, but in answer to the question, "Are you better off now than you were 4 years ago?" the answer is a screaming YES! And I have no intention of voting for a clown who wants to go back to all of Bush's failed policies, only double down on them all.

good answer

I wish i could rave more than once! :)

I don't say this too often, but AMEN!!!!!!

wHAT IS DESTROYING ECONEMY IS oBAMA'S NIPPLE DRINKING WAYS WITH RED CHINA

What paying more taxes would help my bottom line?

Why do people forget to mention the "temporary" nature of the 1% "job creating" tax cuts that was a lie?

Great point!!!

I ask myself the same question. My father works every day, but when Reagan did his tax cuts, my dad could not find a job anywhere. No matter the pay, no matter the work, he couldn't get anything. Surprise, surprise, Bush comes in, does his tax cuts, and the same thing happened to my husband.

Hi Brosia, The GOP agenda which is driven by special interests is not job or workforce oriented, it is driven by greed and they see opportunity elsewhere to the benefit of a few unfortunately, at the expense of our citizens and the nation we came to know.. Reagan was the guy who poured the foundation first by d-regulation, merger policies, and off shore marketing a( our jobs and corporations),. They have just advanced those policies since then. We need to get a grip and dump these bums!, GOP congress is a disgrace.

Can we fire them all, no pension, and start over?

I think the only thing we can do is vote them out! and possibly boycott the firms financing them.

Q U I T GIVING TO THE RICH BECAUSE THEY SURE AREN'T GIVING TO THE POOR!!!!!

AMEN my friend.

..of course..it's all part of part of bush's "..I can't do ANYTHING right.." policy (..do you see any of those tax-free rich pricks investing in America?? me either...)

Here is the slippery slope. Tax cuts work when its a minor slow down. In the case of a MINOR DEPRESSION tax cuts actually do the opposite.

The governement needs to spend less money...our taxes are plenty high and raising taxes at this time will stiffel economic growth as people would have even less money to spread around...

It won't affect the middle class, or the poor.

They are the largest single cause of the deficit...PROVEN by the CBC!

Obviously!

You better believe it. Regardless of the lies the ideological right have bought into, it's a case of basic math--COMMON SENSE. For all intents & purposes this country derives its income from TAXES. When taxes are lowered that means you subtract money from what the the country would ordinarily take in.

The ideological right CLAIMS that lower taxes provide an "incentive" (not even a guarantee--just a maybe) that the rich (corporations) will create jobs & thus increase revenue to the federal government. The problem with their premise is:

A. It isn't guaranteed, just wishful thinking (at best).
B. The only jobs that have been created are in ASIA, not the USA.

Sorry people, I'm not a gambler & have not lived as long as I have on "wishful thinking."

You're in the wrong place to be talking common sense, the left ear is the only one that will hear you...and only if it can be heard over the noise of the right!

I know my friend. Every once in a while I can't resist the opportunity to use common sense. I was kind of hoping for a lot of raves from the "left" ears LOL!

The Right only knows common senselessness!

Not "all" but I'd say a good portion; especially within the confines of SH.

What on earth are you on about? A country does not derive its wealth from taxes, it is from private sector workings, natural resources and innovation, none of which are handled by the public sector. It is not reducing taxes on the rich that increases employment, it is changing the tax system so it is more beneficial to the company to employ more people, at the moment companies need armies of accountants to work out taxes and they are much too high for it to be worth employing more people. The purpose of reducing taxes on the rich is to encourage them to stay in this country and for foreign rich people to immigrate, increasing the tax base.